Happy New Year!

picture my friend Julian recently took of me for a project. I had to pick a theme, guess what mine is ;)
So hopefully your Holidays are going well. mine have been..pretty good! Very relaxing though last night & today I've been gettin' back to business. Organizing my craft supplies, and doing some work due this week etc etc. Though tonight we are preparing for some New Year's festivities by making spinach pies, chilling the champagne, and preparing my party gown.

Here's hoping you have a fantastic New Year coming up, see you in '08!

Merry Holiday-ness!

Here's hoping everyone has a great Holiday season filled with good food, laughter, and enjoyment of all sorts!


(the little stuffed Matryoshka doll I finished for my friend)

I Digress

I made part of a Christmas present last night with this stuffed felt pin. Semi-pleased with the results, though I do think she'll enjoy it. I'll continue my experiments tonight while watching Manon of the Spring. I saw the first part of that film last night, Jean de Florette. The whole film looked like an Anthropologie layout. Lovely!

Mas of Essimar

I finally sent out my boss' christmas card yesterday, I figured I'd get something special so I purchased this lovely letterpress card from Starparticle.

Speaking of cards, at the last Renegade fair I purchased one from local artist Esther aka Essimar-whose shop has left me lusting after most everything!

News

news of a feathery kind...

• Israelis vote for national bird
• Scotland creates more protected areas for its birds.
• New York's birds: most love Central Park, some love Brooklyn pizza...
• Also NYC-related, a lovely photo editorial on the yearly homing pigeon race.
  

Mirrors

I'm going to be busy trying to get cards and presents in order :/ Here's a picture (while not bird-related) from Camil Tulcan that I currently love and have on my desktop at work. I found it while browsing Creature Comforts' awesome flickr favorites... Hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

Weekend Feed

I went to the yummy restaurant here, Feed, which is all chicken-theme decorated inside. The Southern food was great and the free jukebox that played 45's was amazing. Also over the weekend I acquired some new zines and visited the Renegade Holiday sale (usual sellers which was kind of disappointing).

Pink Sparrow pins

I've been making felt banners and have thought about pins, but when looking at pink sparrow's amazing felt pins...maybe I'll just stick to the banners haha. Either way, I'm inspired!

Misc...

Claire Nicholson's lavender-filled birds would be perfect to keep near one's bed. Lavender is said to help aid better sleep (via I Like). Also, inspiring me today...Jen Tong's art. Check out her website, I love the lemon prints as well.


Unrelated. 2 video clips to make your day a little sweeter :)
Japanese Robot playing the Violin
Snoop Dog's newest super lo-fi music video

Packages Part1

Trying to get all my shopping done as soon as possible, but it can be pretty hectic especially since I work long hours. So, I think I'm going to do the bulk of it online. Though I am planning to buy my mother a fantastic Faryn Davis piece I think she'll love-which I found at a store. More on that later!

What I have been thinking about is presentation & packaging. I think this year I'll try to do something thoughtful and slightly intricate like Sepia Art Studio's bundles. Warm and gorgeous.

Penguin Books

Penguin has a tradition of having amazing cover designs, and this one from the pocket series, follows in that tradition. Love everything about it!

Misc...

Parkhaus Berlin has pretty sleek felt items, their pouches are great- but I also really like theirfelt mobiles. (via creature comforts). It's starting to be that time now where I have to start ordering Christmas Presents. While fun to pick out...it can be stressful getting an order in on time!

Figs & Ginger

My birthday recently passed , I received a new pet turtle (still trying to name her)...and delicious cakes! On my wish list though I should have included something from Figs & Ginger. I plan to purchase one of their bird items though I'm not sure which. Love the fawn items as well!

Terminus, etc

Terminus
Awesome short with fantastic art direction. Seriously, does Montreal's subway system look like this? If so I need to get over there.

It's pouring here in Chicago but I had to come into work. Sitting in my dim office listening to My Bloody Valentine. It's the kind of day where I want to stay in and watch a film and drink tea. If I could drink it out of this Shinzi Katoh birdcage mug...even better!

expansion....

This blog is still going to be mainly about birds but I've got so many other things I want to post about that every once in a while I'll add them here. Easier than making another blog no?

On that note I DO have some birdy design I'm lovin right now. Anders Nilsen is a graphic novel/zine artist and whose Big Questions 8 caught my eye at our local zine shop. The series features a group of birds and conflicts between them.

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paul & joe & birds

there are so many things on the Paul & Joe site I don't know where to start. Actually though, the Reginne top is a good place to start...

Placemats by 3P-3

lovely napkins available at their Etsy store. (via decor8)

Julianna Swaney

Not sure why I haven't posted Oh My Cavalier aka Julianna's stuff here before. But heavily bird-influenced art amazingness galore! Was just reminded about it while browsing the Shiny Squirrel site. Check Julianna's site here and her shop here....

misc...

• Iraqis and their Birds...
• Wildlife in Austrailia's Murray Wetlands is in trouble...
  
• and a really great article from the Jeff Wells at the Philadelphia Inquirer on conservation: What We buy Hurts Birds We Watch.

Mina Perhonen

Mina Perhonen. i wish i could just go on a shopping trip to japan....

Andrew Bird by Saverio Truglia

funny I've not had any Andrew Bird related items on here yet haha! more awesomeness at Saverio's site...

Kate Spade wants to go Birding...

love this. Kate Spade's site featuring a small bit on Birding. Also, great photo shoot! (via oh joy)

Rae Dunn birdhouses

Check out these fantastic ceramic birdhouses from Rae Dunn. I especially like the cute touches such as "chirp"... (via sfgirlbybay)

News news

-wanna know what shade-grown coffee is? and why it's helping birds? read about it here

-gulls have found a new vacation spot, and it's causing some commotion..

-Donald Trump being an ass again, this time in other countries. Please, take a moment to 'sign' a petition here.

wanting another Sunday

I'm pretty sure this week is going to be pretty hectic at work (like the last). Hopefully I can get some posting done at some point. Though I did see Beirut on Thursday which was such a fantastic show. Makes me want to pick up another instrument (or 3 like the people in the band!)

Well over at the new Poppytalk Handmade shop there's some great things (at great prices as well) Faves:
Cabin & Cub


track & field

Pear birdhouse

I'm so happy I stumbled across this on Design Sponge today. Lovely pear design handmade birdhouse by blogger Two Straight Lines. I think she should do a whole fruit series!

Also, I absolutely love this Italian ad campaign bringing attention to global warming. Wonder if they sell posters... (via tree hugger)

Henrike Stahl

I have tried my hand at mixed media and usually don't do a very good job of it, being at Henrike Stahl's site inspires me to look at it differently. Though I probably wouldn't be able to paint as well as she! (via scout holiday)

Kicki Fjell

Kicki Fjell has some great prints for sale over at Andyland. This one I really love...

wedding card ideas? etc

So next month I have a wedding to attend to and I've been looking for unique cards and so far haven't really had any success. I've thought about making my own incorporating an old wedding photo from ebay or an antique store..but not sure yet! If anyone knows any great online stores that have a nice selection (bird or non), let me know!

In the meantime through my searches I've been coming across some nice non-wedding cards. I think I can find a use for these!


Blackbird Press


Three Potato Four (wooden card!)



Pistachio Press

Emma Bridgewater

the Emma Bridgewater site is so fantastic and has SUCH an abundance of things (bird related and not) for the home. So far though i lovelove these plates and teapots....

Birdcage notecards from luxe paperie...

autumn & misc....

I've been sick the past couple says (it seems fall is here since the weather has changed alot) so things are rather slow. In any case The aforementioned approach of autumn has got me in the mood to go on more hikes, have campfires etc!

Fore some reason fall more than any other time makes me think of suet (maybe it's the color?). Suet is really easy to make and you can find lots of varieties online but here are some great links to make some :)

Baltimore Bird Club Suet Recipes

Sialis' bird recipes (a little more involved!)

Suet facts from birdnature.com

Also making me think of fall.. Amy Leong's prints on vintage wallpaper!



News...

Godwit makes huge pacific flight

misc...

news from Forbes on Malaysia's coastal developments destroying bird habitats....

BBC news reports on rise in numbers of rare bird in Scotland...

local news has great tips on attracting birds to your yard with trees & shrubs...

Lastly, while browsing notcot I saw these amazing necklaces by Fayn Davis, who is going to be at the Renegade Craft fair next weekend (Sept 16-17) in Chicago..

mee-lee-wah-kay

Paid a visit to Milwaukee today, mainly because we didn't know what else to do and Chicago didn't seem to have much going on. Went to Paper Boat for a bit and checked out all the fantastic items. Matt Cipov has some great prints for sale there, but you can also fiind them at his etsy store.


Tom Stack had some paintings on display on the wall which were pretty cute and featured seagulls. I do wish there was a way I could get a copy of this poster, which I found on his website. Seeing as it's so damn clever!